2024 Spring Issue of Urban Land - 19

including a trailer for the
resident manager, as well
as trailers to be used for
social services, medical care,
and a community center.
Perhaps if we made a large
order of trailers, we could
customize the trailers' colors
and adjust the shape a bit
to look more architectural
rather than aerodynamic.
The communities would be
gated, with landscaping,
and residents would have
finger keypads to get into
the gated area and their
individual units. Early, very
rough estimates indicate that
this model-including the onsite
manager and contracting
of social services-would
cost approximately $50,000
per unit. This would include
weekly water and sewage
service, as well as electricity
from a central hookup and
internet.
UL: Why might travel trailers
be a good fit for property
owners?
Property owners can lease
the land-they don't have to
permanently sell the land-to
be used for travel trailers.
My first thought was to
get an Amazon-type facilWhere
Does ESG Fit in
the Booming SingleFamily
Rental Market?
The single-family rental (SFR)
sector has sparked its share
of controversy, primarily over
concerns that institutional
investors are blocking access
to homeownership. Given the
United States' ongoing housing
crisis, understanding whether
SFR expansion increases rents
and home prices is important
but also just one element of
the sector's work on ESG.
Real estate is watching
closely, with both climate and
ity or another national user
of big warehouse space
where you could put trailers
in their parking lot. A
community could be established
with a five-year land
lease-enabling neighbors
to have regular input on
how the trailer community is
being managed. The property
owner could provide
housing for employees with
proper zoning approval but
[with] no need for building
permits, as there is no need
for underground utilities.
UL: What are the obstacles to
this approach?
HUD does not recognize
travel trailers as permanent
housing, and trailers do not
qualify for HUD assistance
or other federal housing
programs that are available
to cities. As a result, efforts
to move individuals from
an unsheltered to sheltered
status could not include
travel trailers-[though] they
meet FEMA's guidelines for
shelter in emergency situations.
The next step is to
encourage HUD to change
... guidelines to allow travel
trailers as permanent housing,
subject to inspections
biodiversity emergencies heating
up and poised to drive
significant industry change.
Understanding what companies
in the SFR space are
doing to improve their ESG
impact is imperative.
Leading SFR companies are
developing strategies to tackle
social equity, land use, decarbonization,
and resilience for
maximum impact.
Social equity
The single-family rental market
is deeply nuanced, and institutional
investors own only a
small fraction of the market.
As Dan Magder, CEO of Center
or other requirements, such
as requiring the trailers to
be less than 20 years old
and inspected every three
to five years to maintain
manufacturer standards.
FEMA already uses these
exact same trailers to house
people for years at a time.
UL: How can people who are
interested in this concept get
involved?
We are going to share the
report on single-axle travel
trailers to educate the ULI
community. We hope that
someone reads the report
and knows of a piece of
property where this concept
would work, and that
local community leaders
who don't want to spend
so much money on building
housing for the homeless
will feel like this is a good
solution. With ULI's coalition,
we could get the [HUD
regulations] changed and,
with a shake of an executive
pen, be on the way to providing
housing for thousands
of people.
DIANA LIND is a writer and urban policy
specialist.
Creek Homes, has pointed out,
" Conversations around multifamily
rentals do not treat all
investors the same. No one
puts luxury high-rise apartments
in Miami into the same
category as income-restricted
apartments in Baltimore. The
single-family housing conversation
needs that same level of
basic distinctions. "
Reversing the traditional narrative
around flipping homes
to rent out to higher-income
tenants, Center Creek has
developed a for-profit model
that purchases and renovates
deeply distressed, discounted
" FEMA already
uses these exact
same trailers to
house people for
years at a time. "
- Bruce Etkin,
ULI Foundation
board member
older homes at risk of aging
out of the housing stock.
The company performs
$35,000 in renovations per
unit, on average, by adding
insulating and air sealing, a
mix of Energy Star windows,
efficient appliances, and HVAC
units-a list soon to encompass
an option for rooftop
solar. The homes' low initial
cost lets rent stay affordable.
Critically, Magder notes, " We
layer on a whole suite of resident
services: financial literacy
training, credit counseling,
free internet ... and a program
called Pathway to Homeownership
that offers a two-to-one
SPRING 202 4
URBAN LAND
19
DEVELOPMENTS
2024 Spring Issue of Urban Land

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of 2024 Spring Issue of Urban Land
